Nobody needs to be told starting Aaron Rodgers, Arian Foster, or Calvin Johnson is a good idea. Duh, right? You can’t have studs at every position, though, unless you’re in the shallowest of leagues. This is where the Shot Caller comes in. Need help deciding which bargain basement QB to use and which to ignore on Rodgers’ bye week? Let’s talk. Looking for solutions at running back because Foster is a game-time decision? Look no further. Need to know which of your unproven targets to start and which to sit since you ignored Megatron and went RB-QB-Gronkowski in your first three rounds? I’m your huckleberry. Past results may not guarantee future success, but I believe ignoring them entirely can ruin your Sundays in a hurry. Read on for a little history and, hopefully, a little sage advice.

Note: Fantasy points based on FF Today’s default scoring system.

Bye Weeks: Baltimore, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Houston

Grab a Helmet

Brandon Weeden v. SD: I doubled down on Weeden in Week 7 and he didn’t disappoint, tossing for 264 yards and a pair of TD strikes in the narrow defeat at Lucas Oil Stadium. The performance marked the sixth consecutive time he’s notched more than 15 fantasy points (Week 2 through the present). Here’s a short list of quarterbacks who have failed to sustain that same level of consistency in 2012: Aaron Rodgers, Cam Newton, Michael Vick, Robert Griffin III, Tony Romo, and Andrew Luck. Surprised? Granted, 15 points is more “serviceable” than “superb,” but it’s enough to get the job done when you’re grinding through the bye weeks. Is Weeden on par with the aforementioned hurlers? Definitely not. Is he as far behind them as most people think? You already know how I’d answer that one. Let it ride with Cleveland’s other, less celebrated rookie this Sunday against the Bolts.

Good news for Luck: The Titans have allowed 16 passing TDs this season.

Grab a Clipboard

Cam Newton @ CHI: Despite the fact I pegged him as a likely sophomore slumper back in August, I’ve only recommended a sit-down of Newton once this season. Naturally, that was the week he posted his best numbers of the season (v. Atlanta in Week 4) and also the only week in which he threw for multiple TDs. What’s the moral to this story? Newton is definitely slumping (pat on the back) but you always run the risk of missing out on huge numbers if you opt to set him down (slap to the forehead). I think that’s a risk worth taking again in Week 8, by the way, as the Panthers travel to the Windy City for a showdown with a very hot and very confident Bears team. The Chicago defense is making great quarterbacks look average and average quarterbacks look bad this season. I’m not sure which type Newton is on a week-in, week-out basis, so give him a ballcap and a headset if you’ve got some QB depth.

Brady Quinn v. OAK: We know which type Brady Quinn is (WELL below average) and the only real mystery is why Romeo Crennel doesn’t see the same thing. Quinn got the surprise nod over a convalescing – but healthy enough – Matt Cassel for Week 8 and will face the Raiders in his second start as a Chief. Here’s how that first one went against Tampa: very, very poorly (180 yards and two interceptions). Oddly, Crennel made a similar decision way back in 2008 when both he and Quinn were with Cleveland, tapping the former Golden Domer to make his very first NFL start in place of a struggling Derek Anderson. Quinn didn’t win that one either and has, in fact, won only THREE games as an NFL starter in five-plus seasons. At this rate, he’ll catch up with Brett Favre on the career wins list when he’s about 390. Unless he’s the only QB on your roster who’s playing…and why is he on your roster again?

Josh Freeman @ MIN: Call me a contrarian (you wouldn’t be the first) but I’m still not buying Freeman as an automatic start despite three excellent performances in a row. He’s averaging just shy of 350 yards and more than a couple scores per game his last three contests and is coming off by far his best career outing, a 420-yard, three-touch explosion against the Saints (it could well have been four TDs). Nevertheless, he faces a Minnesota defense in Week 8 yielding just 6.4 yards per pass attempt this year, good for 8th in the league. The three opponents he just lit up – Washington, Kansas City, and New Orleans – rank 27th, 31st, and 32nd, respectively, in that same metric. Perhaps it’s a chicken or the egg argument (are they bad because they faced Freeman or is he good because he faced them?) but I’ve got a hunch the big Buc hits a speed bump at the Metrodome on Thursday night. Sit him down if you have comparable options at the position.

Running Backs